In his State of the Union address last night President Bush defended the war on Iraq, called for the renewal of the Patriot Act and reached out to the conservative Christian wing of the Republican Party by opposing gay marriage.

Despite the loss of 2.5 million jobs since he took office, Bush also rigorously praised the improving economy and called for Congress to make last year’s tax cuts permanent.

The address was deliberately scheduled to take place a night after the Iowa caucus in an attempt to push the Democratic presidential contenders from the news spotlight. Although Bush never mentioned the election, the speech was seen by many as the start of Bush’s re-election campaign. On foreign policy, Bush defended his unilateralist approach saying “America will never seek a permission slip to defend the security of our people.” Later in the Democratic response, Nancy Pelosi criticizes the “go-it-alone foreign policy that leaves us isolated abroad and that steals the resources we need for education and health care at home.”

Bush declared the U.S. was on a mission to “lead the cause of freedom.” He said “Because of American leadership and resolve, the world is changing for the better.”

On domestic issues, Bush reached out to his conservative supporters. He called for new programs to promote abstinence among teenagers, he denounced gay marriage and for religious charities to receive federal funds.

According to the New York Times, Bush’s top political advisor Karl Rove personally called several conservative social groups on Tuesday to make sure they would be listening to the State of the Union.